Suspect (1987)

Director:

Peter Yates

Writer:

Eric Roth (writer)

Release Date:

23 October 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

No matter the cost, No matter the danger. They will find the truth.

Plot:

A judge commits suicide, and his secretary is found murdered. A homeless deaf-mute man, Carl Anderson is arrested for her murder...

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Suicide | Judge | Courtroom Drama | Deaf

Cast

Cher	...	Kathleen Riley
Dennis Quaid	...	Eddie Sanger
Liam Neeson	...	Carl Wayne Anderson
John Mahoney	...	Judge Matthew Bishop Helms
Joe Mantegna	...	Charlie Stella
Philip Bosco	...	Paul Gray
E. Katherine Kerr	...	Grace Comisky
Fred Melamed	...	Morty Rosenthal
Lisbeth Bartlett	...	Marilyn
Paul D'Amato	...	Michael
Bernie McInerney	...	Walter
Thomas Barbour	...	Justice Lowell
Katie O'Hare	...	Elizabeth Quinn
Rosemary Knower	...	Justice Lowell's Secretary
Aaron Schwartz	...	Forensic Pathologist

Runtime:

121 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Netherlands:12 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | New Zealand:R13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Magder Studio, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

TriStar Pictures

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Kathleen writes "HELP ME" on the chalkboard it is roughly in the center of the board and written somewhat lightly. A few seconds later as the suspect is writing, the words "HELP ME" are now way over to the right, written much darker and is not in the same handwriting.

Quotes:

Kathleen Riley: I spend all of my day with murders and rapists, and what's really crazy, I like them.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Reflections on Golden Pond (2003) (V)

Cher surprises

Before watching this movie I had some serious doubts about it. Not only is this a courtroom drama (and as you know the streets of Hollywood seem to be paved with this kind of scripts), it also featured Cher as one of the main actresses. I'm not really a fan of her as a singer, but seeing her as a good actress is even a lot harder. As you know, almost all pop diva's, young or old, seem to have that urge to appear in one or two movies and that almost always results in complete disasters. So why would Cher be any different...?

When a judge commits suicide and his secretary is found murdered in a river, a homeless and deaf-mute man, named Carl Anderson, is arrested for her murder, because all indirect evidence points to him. Because he can't afford a lawyer, public defender Kathleen Riley is assigned by the court as his lawyer. Even though she doesn't always believes in his innocence, she still goes after the real killer. She gets help from the congressional adviser Eddie Sanger, who is called to be on the jury panel and together they find some important evidence that the murder has something to do with corruption in some high ranks...

I must admit that Cher has done a better job than I ever expected from her. She actually was very convincing and interesting to watch as the public defender. Together with Liam Neeson she makes this movie work. Their nice performances and their difficult professional relationship in this movie are actually the best thing this movie has to offer. The story on itself certainly isn't that bad, but the plot is a bit far-fetched and gives this movie an ending that is a bit too abrupt.

In the end this is a reasonably well-done courtroom drama / thriller that lacks the required tension to be fully satisfying, but which offers some nice acting and some good direction. It's not the best movie in the genre, but it is enjoyable enough to be worth a watch. I give it a 6.5/10.